A Long Winter

This morning about 7, after another snowfall last night.

It has been a long winter.

G had a number of problems which began last October and which have left him a little weaker and more unsteady physically, as well as with some further impairment in cognition.

In February he finally started to come out of it, though he has not come back to where he was in September.

That is not unusual for dementia. It's progressive, and sometimes after a downward step, there is a recovery, but rarely to prior levels. While I know this, it is still difficult to live through and manage.

His diagnosis was 5 years ago. Since then, with each step down, it has taken me a bit to adjust and cope. But it was always a matter of days, not months, that I needed to come to grips, emotionally and practically, with the new level of physical or cognitive abilities. This time, though, it took me several months, and I'm still not as well adjusted to this level as I would like to be. Which means I have a shorter temper with G. Not helpful to either one of us, but there it is. Even my various support groups haven't lifted me as much as I've needed (not their fault).

With the days getting longer and some of the pain issues he had finally gone, he is in better spirits, which makes life better for both of us. I am wondering how much the shorter days of winter negatively affect him and will talk to his doctor next time about light therapy, so we will be ready next fall with something to try.